1. Priority
Priority is claimed to German Patent Application 10 2007 061 261.5, filed Dec. 19, 2007. The disclosure of the aforementioned document is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
2. Field of the Invention
The field of the present invention relates to luminous bodies made of a transparent plastic moulding with indentations which contain electronic components, in particular LED DIEs, and to the production thereof.
3. Background
Alternative concepts to conventional light sources and modules, for example incandescent bulbs or energy-saving lamps, are questionable in respect of longevity and energy efficiency.
Incandescent lamps are disadvantageous owing to their poor efficiency in respect of light emission and high development of heat, as well as the short lifetime. In Australia, in the coming years, incandescent bulbs will by law be entirely taken off the market and replaced by other concepts.
Energy-saving lamps are much more energy-efficient, but they represent an environmental burden owing to heavy metal contents, in particular mercury, and must be disposed of as hazardous waste.
LEDs are an alternative light source, which does not have these disadvantages and also has a long lifetime and high energy efficiency.
LEDs are gaining increased use as light sources, for example in the automotive industry, spaceflight, interior lighting, exterior wall configuration, etc.
Attempts are currently being made to establish LEDs as a 1:1 alternative to conventional light sources. LED development is therefore being pushed in the direction of more power and greater brightness. These high performance requirements, and the concomitant pointwise development of heat, represent a great challenge for the materials being used. The light emission of LED DIEs generally lies in the 15-20% range, which necessitates the use of lens systems. This is currently done using primary optics which are integrated directly as constituents into the LED, or secondary optics which are combined as lenses or lens systems with the LED afterwards.
The LEDs are applied onto printed circuit boards. The heat is dissipated via integrated or subsequently applied systems. The LED-equipped printed circuit board may in general be protected against moisture and dirt by a plastic housing. The plastic housing is transparent in the exit region of the LED radiation, and is optionally designed as a lens body.
In microelectronics, support elements such as printed circuit boards or electrically conductive films are equipped with semiconductor chips (so-called “DIEs”).
Modules which contain support elements with a plane support surface, on which LED DIEs or other electronic components are arranged, have been known for a long time and are conventional. Such an arrangement leads to the formation of a step between the support surface and the upper side of the components arranged on it. In practice, it has been found that such modules are difficult to handle. In particular, the arrangement is unfavourable for the production of an electrical contact of the electronic component with neighbouring constituents (for example conductor tracks). Furthermore, precise placement of the components on the support element—for example with the aid of a so-called “pick and place” method—is difficult and/or possible only with the aid of expensive and complicated devices.